


Battle of the Heirs

by HPFandom_archivist



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, BDSM, Drama, Explicit Language, M/M, Mpreg, Mystery, Sexual Content, Spoilers, Suspense, Threesome, Tragedy, Voyeurism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-11-21
Updated: 2006-11-20
Packaged: 2018-09-30 07:03:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10156904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HPFandom_archivist/pseuds/HPFandom_archivist
Summary: Dumbledore is dead, Harry must now become the Leader of the side of Light. Voldemort  stands in waiting, as Harry comes to grasps with his future.





	1. Confrontations

**Author's Note:**

> Note from SeparatriX, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [HP Fandom](http://fanlore.org/wiki/HP_Fandom_\(archive\)), which was closed for health and financial reasons. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [HP Fandom collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/hpfandom/profile).

    
Harry looked around the familiar compartment of the Hogwarts Express, knowing that it may well be the last time that he saw it. So many things had changed in the world since he had boarded it for the first time. Then, the only family he had had was the Dursleys, and though they were blood relatives, they could hardly be called 'family'. Now, he had a family - a family that he had created himself. A brother and a sister, he thought as he looked at Ron and Hermione. They're willing to put their lives in danger to help me. An ex-girlfriend who had allowed him to put things on hold because she agreed that it was the right thing to do – she, too, recognized that if they continued their relationship, it would only bring them both heartache. Voldemort had been gradually killing off Harry's family since he was born. First his parents, then Sirius, and now Dumbledore. Harry was determined to stop Voldemort, if only so that he could have a normal life at last. 

Harry looked at the two other people in compartment. Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood; they were the only two members of the DA who had answered Hermione's call the night that Dumbledore died. They were the ones who came when Harry ran off to help Sirius. Harry stood up, walked over to the compartment door, raised his wand and intoned, "Muffliato." He turned to his five friends. "Look, guys, I know what I'm getting into, and before you say anything I want you to hear me out. You, the people who are closest to me, are going to be the ones who Voldemort targets. I don't want to be responsible for anything that happens to you. I know things about Voldemort… things that only I and Voldemort himself know. He is now my responsibility. I want you each to swear to me that you will not do anything to jeopardize yourselves." 

Hermione turned to face Harry. "Ron and I have already told you; you are not going anywhere without us. You can try to be the noble hero all you want, but you're not leaving us. Even if I have to bind us all together magically; you know I'll do it."   
Harry laughed. "Is there even such a spell?"   
Ron started laughing, too. "Do you really want to test her on that?"   
"Look, Harry, we all love you, and we're not going to let you do this alone," Hermione said to him, finally smiling.   
Neville looked at Harry. "Harry, its V- You-Know-Who's fault that my parents are in St Mungo's. We're not going to abandon you, Harry; you've got Ron and Hermione. And you've got me."   
Before Harry could say anything to Neville, Ginny spoke up. "We're all willing to do whatever we have to do to keep you safe. I know that you broke up with me to keep me safe, but Voldemort already knows you're close to my family – and, to be fair, the Weasleys are probably more at risk than anyone; we are infamous for being blood traitors and Muggle-lovers, after all," she said with a giggle. "We've already lost family members to this cause. Mum lost two brothers on the same day to the Death Eaters in the first war; Moody says it took five of them to kill my uncles, and it was their murders that sent Dolohov to Azkaban. You're trying to say that this is your fight, and your fight alone – but we want you to come out of this fight alive! Will you let us help you?"   
"Okay," Harry answered. "But before I agree to let you help me, I have certain requirements. I am not ready to tell you all of what I know. I've always told Ron and Hermione more than anyone else, and I want it to stay that way. Ginny, Neville, Luna, I promise to keep you in the loop as much as possible." Luna looked up from her copy of The Quibbler for the first time. "And if you're with me, you're with me till the end. We can't change our minds halfway through this; we're not just practicing any more."   
Luna spoke up. "Well, we didn't form the DA just because of Umbridge, did we? Even thought she was a horrible woman. Although, daddy has been doing some research this summer – he thinks she may have been attacked by a Madgell."   
Hermione looked at her questioningly. "What's a Madgell?"   
"An invisible insect. It sneaks into your ears and feeds on your brain," Luna replied seriously. "Anyway, as I was saying; we decided when we first formed the DA that its purpose was to help us prepare to fight You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters."   
"Don't forget, though," Hermione said, "that's what the Order's job is, too."   
"The Order won't even let us help; they think we're just kids!" Ron said angrily.   
"Ron has a point, Hermione. They've always said that we're 'too young to fight'. You and Ron are of age now, but have they bothered asking you to join?" Harry pointed out.   
"They say that Fred and George are members, but they're not really – they never get to go on any of the interesting missions," Ginny added. "If we're going to try to take a more important role, they'll want to be involved."   
"Saying that I'll let you help me is not the same as saying that I'm going to bring the DA into the war!" Harry exclaimed.   
"We're going to need all the help we can get, Harry, and we know that the Ministry and the Order are going to do everything that they can to keep us from helping in this war. Harry, we have to keep our allies close! You might not like it, but we're going to be your closest allies. Not to mention you closest friends." Hermione smiled at him.   
"You're not just my friends, you're my family. I've never had any family, unless you count the Dursleys–" he snorted. "You guys have always been there for me. I was willing to run off and fight this war on my own, just to keep you safe. I can't begin to explain how much it would hurt me if any of you were harmed from me dragging you into this stupid war. But you don't seem to be giving me a lot of choice!"   
"Damn right, mate, we're not gonna let you have all the fun!" Ron said with an impish grin.   
"Something tells me this is not going to be all fun, Ron," Hermione replied, taking hold of his hand. Ron looked over at her and smiled. Harry went back to his seat beside the window and watched the landscape change as they moved closer to London. Closer to my destiny, he thought. Closer to Voldemort and his Horcruxes.   
**************************************************************** 

Harry looked out at Platform 9 ¾ when the Hogwarts Express came to a stop. He watched the anxious parents rush to the sides of their children. Harry noted that this was a first – the concern for the children was almost palpable. The war was already changing everyone. 

"RONALD WEASLEY!" Harry jumped at the sound of Mrs. Weasley's voice. He looked over to where Ron was stood talking to his mother. 

"Harry needs me more than you do right now, mum – who do you think is more likely to be attacked? He's my best mate; I'm not just going to abandon him! With me and Hermione there, at least he's not going to be facing anything alone. He's not even of age yet, mum!" 

Harry made his way over to them. Hermione nudged him. "Is this really our Ron? It could be someone using Polyjuice Potion, you know!" Hermione whispered, sounding amused. 

"Does seem a little of character for him – I never would've thought he'd have the courage to stand up to his mum; I know I wouldn't!" Harry replied with a small grin. 

"Now you've got my two best friends thinking I've lost my mind," Ron said with a smile. 

"Maybe you've just grown up a bit," Mrs. Weasley said, her pride in her son showing in her face. 

"Mrs. Weasley," Harry said, "I've tried to convince him otherwise, but both Ron and Hermione refuse to leave me. I don't want anything to happen to either of them; they're my best friends! Realistically, I know that the Death Eaters will know that. And I know that that puts them in danger." His smile faded. "But the three of us together will be stronger than the three of us separately." 

"Well, you're coming back to The Burrow first for a proper meal. Your aunt always sends you back looking so thin! Who knows what she's going to do now that there are three of you to starve? There are a few Order members who have some advice for you, too." Harry looked around as they were flanked by a group of people; one grabbed hold of his arm, and Harry recognized the familiar sensation of Apparation. When he got his bearings back, he looked around, only to find that he was standing outside The Burrow. 

"Wotcher, Harry!" 

"Tonks? Where are the others?" Harry asked. 

"They'll be along shortly. The Order wanted to speak to you alone first." 

"What, so they thought they would kidnap me?!" Harry asked, trying to control his anger. 

"Not kidnap, Harry, that's a bit of a strong word for it…" 

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, TAKING HARRY LIKE THAT WITHOUT WARNING US?!" Harry turned to see Hermione standing behind him, her face red and her wand pointed at Tonks. 

"Only following orders - I was told to bring him here alone. Molly was supposed to bring the rest of you." 

"Did you really think we wouldn't notice Harry going missing? For all we knew, Death Eaters had taken him! What a stupid plan!" 

"Stupid plan, you say? I happen to think that it was one of my better ones." Moody appeared behind Hermione. "Now, can I ask you to lower your wand, or will I be forced to disarm you?" 

"So, this is what the Order has been brought to?" Harry asked. "All along, I thought you were all brave heroes. Now I find out you resort to kidnapping me, and threatening my friends." 

"No one has threatened anyone, Harry," Moody said. 

"You stop pointing your wand at her, before I'm forced to use some of those curses your imposter taught us!" Ron had just Apparated beside Hermione, his wand turned on Moody. 

"Ron, you shouldn't have Apparated! You don't even have your license yet!" Hermione said. "Anyway, the Order wouldn't harm any of us. They're just stupid enough to think that they'd be able to bring Harry here without us following." 

"So we're beginning to see," Lupin said, walking out of The Burrow. "Molly sent word to us the moment that Hermione Disapparated. I guess you took that time Ron, to Disapparate yourself. I must say, you're loyal and very sneaky." 

"Comes from years of sneaking around Hogwarts, I assure you," Ron said with a smirk. 

"We've established that Ron and Hermione aren't going to be leaving me any time soon. Now can we get this over and done with? I'm not exactly eager to get back to the Dursleys', but this is starting to get on my nerves!" Harry said loudly, walking into The Burrow as Hermione and Ron ran to catch up with him. Harry sat himself at the table. "Okay, I'm ready. Mrs. Weasley said you had something to say to me. Now is your chance." 

"We want to know where you and Dumbledore went. And we don't want any of this 'I can't tell you' nonsense. If it's going to be important in this war, the Order needs to know!" Moody said firmly. 

"I'm going to have to disagree with you there. Dumbledore didn't tell you, did he? What makes you think that I will? Just because you bring me here and demand to know, you expect me to tell you everything? I will not be told what to do. Dumbledore at least figured that much out, he was willing to treat me like an adult. We all know that, unwillingly, I'm the main cause of this war. We also know that Voldemort couldn't kill me as a child, nor could he the many times we have come face to face since then. His Death Eaters refuse to even fight me. You should also know that I've never liked being told what to do, and right now, I'm completely sick of it. You can sit there and demand whatever you want, but really - what can you do to me that Voldemort hasn't already tried to do? Dumbledore asked me to keep our plans secret, and you're not going to bully me into doing otherwise. I hope I can still come to you if I need help in the future, but for now, I'm doing this myself, with Ron and Hermione." 

Professor McGonagall spoke up, "The Headmaster's portrait assures me that you have good reasons for keeping the information he shared with you secret, and I can promise that I, personally, will keep in touch with you. But could I suggest that you take at least one Order member along with you when you go off? For our peace of mind?" 

"Minerva, with Dumbledore gone, how can we be sure that the information he was keeping secret is even important?" Lupin interrupted. 

"Remus, you know better than some the importance of being true to your word. If I am not mistaken, you yourself have kept things from others in order to protect them. I would like nothing more than for Harry to tell me everything, but I know that he will go out of his way to keep a promise to someone to whom he is loyal - and knowing the Headmaster as I did, I can say fairly certainly that the information must be greatly important to our cause." 

"I'm still not convinced that the boy shouldn't tell us what he knows. The leader of the Light is dead; in order to win this war, we're going to need as much help and information as possible," Moody said, moving from his chair to stand by the fireplace. 

"Alastor Moody, do you not remember when you refused to report to the Auror division for two months, out of fear that Rosier would take the information to the Death Eaters? How can you criticize Harry for taking the same level of precaution?" Professor McGonagall said tartly. 

"That was different, Minerva, I didn't want to show my hand too quickly. If the Death-Eaters knew that I had inside information on 'em, they would have disappeared before I even got to that abandoned church." Moody was getting gradually more annoyed. Harry knew that the man liked to be in charge when it came to decisions concerning the war. To find out that he was being kept in the dark by both Dumbledore and Harry on something this important was getting to him. 

"Alastor, you do not know that Harry does not have the same reasons. What reason would Dumbledore have for not telling you about something like this?" McGonagall asked coldly. 

"Because it could be deadly if it was slipped out through the spy network." Moody hung his head. Harry was astonished at the way that McGonagall could rationalize with the man so easily. In less than a minute, she had diffused what had appeared to be a bomb ready to go off within him. Harry looked around the room. He was surprised to see that Mr. Weasley, Bill, Tonks, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Hestia Jones, and Sturgis Podmore were all sitting in the room, as not one of them had spoken a word throughout the entire meeting. He turned to look at them a little closer, and could tell from the grave expressions on their faces that they were uneasy with the events that were unfolding before them, but he could not decide if they looked to be agreeing with Moody or McGonagall, and he could tell that Ron and Hermione, stood at the back of the room; were also trying to figure this out. 

"What do you think about it?" He directed his question in the direction of these silent observers, hoping that they would remove the stoic masks they were wearing.   
"Well Harry, I'm not a big believer in secrets," Mr. Weasley said, his face still as hard and featureless as it had been a few moments previously. "But I also know that if it were important for us all to know then Dumbledore would have told us before he told you, and he must have had his reasons for not doing so. In any case, my opinion is fairly irrelevant – what matters is that you now have information that may put the weight of the entire wizarding world on your shoulders. I just hope that you are willing, not to mention able, to hold that much weight on your own." 

"Now, if we're quite finished! For the peace and mind of the Order, Harry, you will take an Order member with you if you decide to go off on one of you little adventures, right?" Harry noticed the change in McGonagall's voice – she sounded strict, but he could still make out a hint of the mothering tone she had been using earlier. 

"… Okay." Harry paused. "But I will choose who will come with us. And if you want to talk to me again, I'd thank you not to pull any more stunts like todays!" 

"I think we can manage that, Harry – to be honest, I tried to talk them out of their plan today, but they can be as stubborn as you when they choose to be! Now, I will take you to the Dursleys' myself. Harry, Ron if you will each take one of my arms. Hermione, I think that you should be able to track us successfully." With a pop, the three of them were standing on Privet Drive. Hermione followed seconds later. 

"This is where I leave you. Listen to me carefully, please. Do not go out trying to find trouble. If you do leave, I assume you will have arranged adequate protection for yourselves. I will keep in touch. Please take care of yourselves." With that, she turned and Apparated away. 

 

 


	2. Changes

The three of them walked up the street, coming to a stop outside number four, Privet Drive. 

"Harry, do you think we should knock?" Hermione asked, but before Harry could answer her question, Aunt Petunia opened the door. 

"What are you doing here?" she said in a hushed voice. 

"Er – well, we got sent home early this year. The Headmaster was killed," Harry said. 

"Inside, quickly, before the neighbors start talking! We can't have the three of you standing on the doorstep looking like that." 

She let them in and then softly closed the door. "Dumbledore, dead?" she said, though the words were almost a whisper. "He can't be…" 

"He is. Professor Snape killed him," Harry said shortly. 

"Snape? Not that horrible boy that my sister went to school with?"   
Harry was startled – not only was his aunt talking about wizards, but they actually agreed on something! "He was in her year. I wouldn't have thought that they were close enough for you to have heard about him or anything, though," Harry said, turning to look uneasily at Ron and Hermione. 

"Oh, I always knew he was no good. I tried warning Lily many times over the years but she never would listen to me. Best friends all through school, the two of them. Not really sure what they saw in each other. The few times he came around my parents' house, all they would talk about was this spell or that potion, the only thing they had in common was their school work." 

"You're kidding me! They were friends?" Harry said, his anger getting the best of him. 

"Mrs. Dursley," Hermione cut in. "I don't think this is the best time to talk about this; Harry found out recently that Snape played a part in the murder of his parents. Now, if you don't mind, we will be staying here with Harry for a few weeks. Ron and I are both of age and fully qualified wizards." 

"If you stay in your bedroom, I suppose it would be okay. I will bring your meals to you," Petunia sniffed, and Harry and the others trudged up the stairs to his room. 

Once in the room, Harry turned to the others. "Well, she agreed more easily than I expected!" 

"She did seem pretty shocked about Dumbledore; maybe she's beginning to realize how serious things are. Anyway, I don't suppose that's important now – what was all that stuff about Snape?!" 

"I remember when the Dementors attacked me and Dudley – she mentioned that a horrible boy had told her about Dementors before. I just always thought she was talking about my dad." He laughed bitterly. "Judging by what she just said, it could well have been that traitor. You'd think he'd show a bit more remorse that his running off and telling Voldemort about the prophecy ended up getting my mum killed, if they were so close." 

"Harry, this isn't the time to think about Snape. We need to find out as much as we can about Horcruxes. I brought a few books from the library to help us in our research; aside from anything else, we need to figure out what the Horcruxes actually are before we can start looking for them. I have a theory: so far, each of the Horcruxes has been found in a location that is somehow linked to the object that was used. Think about it: the diary opened the chamber that it documented; the ring was found in the Gaunt house, where its owner had lived; and Slytherin's locket was found in a cave – a cave that Voldemort found by talking to the snakes. That means that once we figure out what the fifth Horcrux is, we should be able to work out where it is, too!" Hermione looked at Harry, and was relieved to see that she seemed to have distracted him from the issue of Snape. 

"Wait – you think that Voldemort picked the hiding place for each Horcrux based on what item he had used to make it?" Harry asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "I guess that does make sense…" 

Ron laughed. "Yeah, who would have thought he would be so smart!" 

Over the next few weeks, they spent most of their time looking through the books that Hermione had brought with her. One interesting piece of information that they came across was the fact that Rowena Ravenclaw had devoted a lot of her time to perfecting the art of wand-making; Hermione was fascinated to discover that the Hogwarts Founder had been the first to use dragon heartstring as a core for wands. The books also said that she was rumored to have perfected the usage in wands of phoenix feathers – she had had access to the phoenix of her good friend, Godric Gryffindor, which had helped with her research. 

"Harry, you don't suppose there's any connection between Gryffindor's phoenix and Fawkes, do you?" Hermione asked when they came across that fact. 

They had been at Privet Drive for over a month and a half when, one morning, Hedwig brought a letter for Harry; he immediately recognized the writing on the envelope as Professor McGonagall's. He opened it slowly. 

Dear Mr. Potter,   
I am writing to inform you that the will of Professor Dumbledore has been found and that it is essential that I should meet with you as soon as possible. There are some other recent developments of which you should also be made aware. Would it be possible for you to meet me at Hogwarts on Monday morning? 

Yours Truly,   
Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry 

"What do you think she wants to discuss?" Ron asked, glancing at the letter. 

"Not sure. I'm guessing that Dumbledore must have left something to me in his will, but I dunno what the ‘recent developments' are…" He trailed off, a thoughtful expression on his face. 

Hermione started to scan through the last few weeks' worth of Daily Prophets. "Well, the only major events recently have been a few murders - and the only one of those that could be significant was the death of Alistor Gumboil, of the Magical Law Enforcement Squad. According to the article, he was killed while answering a call to a crime scene." She went quiet and continued to read. "They're still investigating, but it seems that they suspect that a Death Eater named Yaxley may be responsible," she added after reviewing all of the papers. 

"I don't see why she'd need to talk to me about that," Harry said dubiously. "I mean, not that it's not important, but there's been a lot of murders recently – that one doesn't seem especially unusual to me." 

"Well, we'll just have to wait and see when we get there. The question is how are we going to get there? Neither you nor Ron can Apparate, yet," Hermione said.   
Harry grabbed his quill and a piece of paper and started to jot down a reply to Professor McGonagall. 

Professor McGonagall,   
Hermione, Ron and I will take the Knight bus to Hogsmeade. From there we will walk to the castle. See you Monday morning. 

Harry Potter 

The friends continued their research until Sunday afternoon when Hedwig returned with another note from Professor McGonagall. 

Potter,   
I do not think it wise for you to walk to the castle from Hogsmeade. I will send a few members of the Order to ensure your safe arrival here; you should expect them around nine o'clock tonight. Also, I suggest that you bring most of your belongings with you. I am sure that Professor Dumbledore has explained to you the protection that you are under while you reside at your relatives' house. However, there is still a slight possibility that You-Know-Who would be able to attack you there, especially as the protection is weakening as you approach your seventeenth birthday. At the present time, I tend to err on the side of caution and therefore ask you to join me here at Hogwarts - at the very least, until you turn of age. 

Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry 

Harry read over the letter and passed it Ron and Hermione, who looked up after reading it. "She sounds worried about something." 

"Yeah, I noticed. I wonder what it could be, though." Harry said. Before anyone could respond, there was another peck at the window. 

"It's Pig!" Ron yelled, running over to the window and grabbing Pigwidgeon. "Harry, he has a letter from the twins." 

Harry could feel the blood leaving his face. "Read it." 

Ron, Harry - and yes, even you, Hermione,   
We just thought it was bloody brilliant that you decided to let us back into the DA. Granted, a very small DA, but hey… we're not picky! We just left a meeting with the Order and thought that we should warn you. There seems to have been some kind of break-in at Azkaban. Not sure yet if any of the prisoners managed to escape. Most of the more well-known members of the Order are being moved to Hogwarts, but we're not sure why yet. While the three of you have been holed up in Harry's house, Ginny has been acting as the leader of the DA. She keeps us informed with Neville, and Luna.   
Feorge and Gred 

Harry laughed. "Well at least they're still their normal selves!" 

"Harry, this is not a laughing matter!" Hermione scolded. 

"I know, Hermione, but you have to admit - it is nice to see that those two are still themselves. Anyway, she seems to be moving the Order members to Hogwarts to protect me. I hate to admit it, but until I turn 17, I'm still vulnerable; I think I'd better go down and tell the Dursleys that we'll be leaving tonight." Harry rose and started towards the door. 

Ron looked at him worriedly. "Mate, do you want us to come you?" he offered. 

"No, I'd better do it on my own." He proceeded down the stairs. 

"What do you want, boy?" Vernon said as soon as Harry stepped off of the bottom step. 

"I just wanted to tell you that my friends and I will be leaving tonight. It looks like it will be the last time I come here." Harry turned and ran back upstairs before Vernon or Petunia, or even Dudley for that matter could say anything to him. As he was entering his room, he heard Vernon saying, "About time that freak and his friends get out of here." There was only a sigh from Petunia.   
"How did it go?" Hermione asked as he shut the door. 

"Exactly how I should have expected it to. They've tormented me for years - they were hardly going to be upset to see the back of me. They've only been civil this past six weeks because they were worried you guys would hex them into oblivion, otherwise." 

There was a sudden knock at the door. Harry opened the door to see Aunt Petunia standing in the hallway, holding a box. "May I come in for a few minutes?" she asked. Harry moved aside to let her into the room, more than a little puzzled. She set the box on the bed. "I know that we haven't been that nice to you. But Lily was my sister – I did love her, and then she abandoned me when she went off to that school. Then I fell in love with Vernon. And you know how he disapproves of anything like that. So I promised him that we would stamp out any abnormality in you. 

"This box is all I have left of Lily. It contains many of her books. Did you know that she used to teach at that school? Chemistry or something like that. I was never any good with the sciences. It also contains the keys to her bank deposit boxes – they're awfully big, old-fashioned things." 

Harry fought to contain his laughter. "That's because they're vaults, not boxes. You said keys, do you mean that there's more than one?" 

"I just know what Dumbledore told when he brought the box to me a few months after you came to live here. He said it was only right that the family gets her belongings. Personally, I never saw the point of keeping it, but he thought it best to hang on to it until you were of age. I stuck it up in the attic and forgot about it until last year, when he came back here. Some of the things that he said made me think of Lily for the first time in years. I am going to leave this with you; I hope that it answers some of the questions that you may have." She stood and left the room, closing the door behind her. 

Harry walked over to the box that lay on the bed and sat down beside it. A rapping on the window signaled the arrival of the latest Daily Prophet evening edition. Hermione took it and began reading eagerly. "Oh, my!" she exclaimed, handing Harry the paper. 

Another Break-out at Azkaban: Calls For Scrimgeour to Resign   
Earlier today another massive break-out occurred at Azkaban, the prison that was once thought to be impenetrable. This is the latest in a long line of events that is leading many to call for the resignation of Rufus Scrimgeour from the position of Minister for Magic.   
Scrimgeour took office less than a year ago, promising to protect the wizarding community from You-Know-Who. Instead, his tenure in office has been marked by numerous attacks on high-profile members of the wizarding community, such as Albus Dumbledore (past Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot), Mr. J.C. Ollivander (Owner of Ollivander Wands) and Mr. Octavius Pepper. Even Hogwarts itself has been attacked, despite Scrimgeour's promises that the school would remain secure. The Daily Prophet has discovered that Hogwarts was protected only by measures put into place by the late Headmaster; the Ministry had gone to no ends to ensure the safety of the students. The Current Headmistress of Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall, refuses to comment on the matter. 

"This is not good, not good at all!" Hermione said, re-reading the article. "Pity they didn't give any more information about the breakout." She glanced at her watch. "We need to pack our things – they'll be here in a few hours." She started to gather up the books that were piled up on the desk. 

"Who do you think will end up as Minister when Scrimgeour's gone? I've got a horrible feeling Umbridge might be a popular choice…" Harry said. 

"Well, we'll just have to make sure she doesn't get in. I'm sure you'll have some influence. You are ‘The Boy Who Lived', after all. Now go ahead and get the rest of your clothes into your trunk." 

Harry had barely finished packing when he saw lights flickering outside.   
"Hermione, those lights look suspiciously like spells - grab your wands. Send the luggage to Hogwarts." He grabbed a piece of parchment from the top of his trunk and scribbled a note. 

Ginny,   
Looks like there may be trouble here. May be a little delayed.   
Harry 

"Hedwig, I need you to take this to Ginny. Stay with her until I come and get you." He turned to Hermione. "We'll need the twins here immediately - send them a message to get here as quickly as possible." Hermione sent her Patronus off to Fred and George. "As soon as you have heard back from them, come and join us in the kitchen. Ron, come with me; I need you to protect my aunt and uncle as much as possible. Try to keep them inside – if I understand Dumbledore's protection charms, they should be safe as long as they're in the house." 

As Harry and Ron reached the bottom step, Uncle Vernon opened the door. A split second later a green jet of light flew towards him, and he fell to the ground, his face frozen in horror. Aunt Petunia ran forward. 

"Vernon! What have they done to my husband?" 

"He's dead, Aunt Petunia, and if we don't get this door shut, we all will be too," Harry screamed at her. Harry and Ron pulled the body of Vernon Dursley away from the door, which Petunia then shut and locked. Dudley peeked out from the living room, horrified. Hermione joined them a few seconds later in the kitchen. 

"What on earth is going on?" Petunia asked, almost hysterical. 

"We don't know yet – we just noticed spells being fired outside and came downstairs, but Uncle Vernon got there before us. But there's meant to be some people coming to pick us up soon; they'll be able to sort this out." 

Hermione looked at him with a horrified expression. "Harry, it's ten past nine. I think that whoever the Order sent to escort us must have been ambushed," she said, her eyes wide. 

Harry swore. "We'll just have to wait for help then." 

They sat quietly for several minutes, until the silence was broken by Fred and George Apparating into the kitchen. 

"Hello everyone, we didn't expect a welcoming party!" Fred said with a smile. 

"Did you go outside and see what was happening?" Harry asked. 

"We did, and it doesn't look good, Harry. We don't know for sure how many of the Order are here, but we definitely saw Lupin, Moody, Tonks, and Shacklebolt fighting. We went ahead and told the Headmistress that reinforcements will be needed." 

"MUM!" screamed Dudley from the living room. 

 


	3. New Leader

Harry and the others ran, wands raised, into the living room - only to see Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, along with Bill and Charlie, stood in the middle of the floor. 

"We figured you two were here already when we got the message from Minerva," Mrs. Weasley said to the twins. Harry noticed a slight trace of terror in her voice. 

"Sorry for calling them first. How bad is it out there?" 

"We're not sure yet. Right now, our main concern is to get you all to safety and then call for a retreat. You will Floo directly to Hogwarts - we have connected the house to the Floo network once more," Mr. Weasley said. He paused, then, "Mrs. Dursley, Dudley, I don't expect you to wish to come with us, but you are more than welcome to," he added graciously. 

"I want to stay until everyone is out of here," Harry proclaimed. 

"I'm sorry Harry, but we can't let you do that - besides, Minerva wanted to see you tonight anyway. Bill, Charlie, Fred and George will make sure everything is ok here. You need to get to safety; I'm not going to let you stay here, you'll be a 'sitting duck'!" Despite the circumstances, Mr. Weasley looked quite pleased with himself for having used a Muggle saying in the correct context. 

Harry grabbed a handful of the Floo powder that Mr. Weasley offered him, though he didn't look pleased about having to leave at all. He tossed it into the fire and said "Hogwarts." A few seconds later, he fell out into the Headmistress's office. 

"Glad to see you're okay, Harry," she said gravely. Much to Harry's surprise, when Mrs. Weasley arrived, she had brought Aunt Petunia with her; Mr. Weasley followed shortly afterwards with Dudley. 

"Looks like we have more guests than we expected," McGonagall said, raising her eyebrows. 

"We couldn't leave them, Minerva. Mr. Dursley is already dead, and I would not be a good Ministry official if I had left two more muggles alone to be killed," Mr. Weasley said, before turning his attention to a silver Patronus. 

"The Order has retreated. There have been some injuries, but all ten of the original guards have returned. Poppy is taking care of everyone now - I think we should take a trip down to the hospital wing to check up on everyone," McGonagall said, walking out of the office. "Now Harry, walk with me, if you please." Harry ran to catch up with her. "As I told you in my letter, there are some things that I need to discuss with you. It seems that Professor Dumbledore has requested that you take over leadership of the Order of the Phoenix - the reasons he has given for this choice were very vague, but he did say that you were the only one who could defeat the Dark Lord. While some of the Order is not keen on the idea, I for one think that if you are the one chosen to defeat him, then this is the perfect position for you. Now - there are other pressing matters to be addressed. Dumbledore split his estate between you and his brother. With Sirius in prison, Dumbledore appears to have been acting as a godfather, of sorts to you - albeit discretely. For example, he made sure that certain things were taken care of with the Dursleys." 

"Yeah - Aunt Petunia told me some things tonight, he kept in touch with her when I was younger." Harry said. He only half heard McGonagall's next words; he was thinking about his new responsibilities. If he was honest, he'd been half expecting this, and had given some thought as to what he would do in the situation, so it wasn't as much of a shock as it could have been otherwise; still, to have his suspicions confirmed was rather overwhelming. 

"He always had your best interests at heart, Harry. Later on tonight, I will give you the rest of your inheritance." She opened the door to the infirmary. "Here we are. Poppy, how is everyone?" 

"Mainly just cuts and scrapes, though Hestia has some rather nasty hex damage: I have her stable at the moment but she needs to be moved to St. Mungo's soon. Other than that I think I can manage." 

"Any casualties?" Harry asked. 

"None on our side," Tonks cut in, walking up to them. "Remus just left with Hagrid and Flitwick to gather the fallen. You already know that Vernon Dursley is dead, but as we retreated, I'm sure I also saw two Death Eaters on the ground. They don't tend to move the bodies, since they see anyone who happens to die as being weak, so we have to go back and collect them." 

McGonagall sighed audibly with relief. "What exactly happened?" she asked. 

"We were on our way to pick Harry up when we came under fire. We didn't know where we were, exactly, but we engaged them. Remus finally figured out that we were nearly at the Dursleys' house, and said that we had to keep Harry inside at all costs. I only saw Harry briefly, when his uncle opened the door and Bellatrix cast Avada Kedavra. We saw Vernon fall, and Harry and Ron move him inside and shut the door. Bellatrix tried to break in but was thrown backwards." 

"Have the cabinets been dealt with?" Harry asked. 

"Professor Flitwick destroyed the one here the day after the attack," Professor McGonagall replied, her eyes still on Tonks, who looked worried. "What is it, Nymphadora?" 

"It's nothing really, I'm just a little concerned; they've gained a lot of confidence since the night they came here." McGonagall looked thoughtful. 

"Okay," said Harry, "If I'm to be the leader of the Order, I might as well start by issuing my first commands. Tonks, get Hestia to St. Mungo's. Madam Promfrey, can you send Remus and Hagrid to see me in the Headmistress's office as soon as they arrive, please? Professor McGonagall, would you see to it that accommodation is provided for Aunt Petunia and Dudley? I will meet you back in your office shortly. Ron and Hermione, I need you to go find out as much information as you can about the break-out at Azkaban, and Fred and George, you go to see Ginny and ask her to meet us here around eleven tonight. Right now I need to speak to Mr. Weasley." 

They all ran off to tend to their various tasks, leaving Harry standing in an empty hallway with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. "I know this is going to come as a shock to you, but… well, I heard earlier tonight that Scrimgeour is resigning as Minister. I need someone I can trust - would you consider taking the position? I know it's a lot to ask of you, and if I had any other choice, I would take it…" 

Mr. Weasley exhaled sharply. "Harry, I don't know if I could do that. It's an enormous responsibility - not to mention, I don't have the same kind of respect within the wizarding community as Dumbledore or Scrimgeour." 

"To be honest, that's what I'm counting on; you're a new voice. I don't know much about politics, but I do have a lot of influence, and I know people. I could probably gather some good supporters - provided you consent to take the role, of course." 

At that point, Fred and George joined them back in the hall. 

"It seems Ginny was here already," George said with a smile. "She was waiting for us when we left the hospital wing. She's going to join us tonight as planned." 

"Good. I have another assignment for you two. I need you to get in touch with the other members of the DA; get Hermione to help you. I need as many here as possible. We have an impeachment and an election to plan." 

The twins looked at him questioningly. "When did our benefactor become political?" 

"Since I persuaded your father to run for Minister for Magic." 

"YOU WHAT?" they screamed in unison. 

"I have not said I would accept Harry's offer," Mr. Weasley said, trying to calm his sons. 

"YOU WHAT?" they screamed again. 

"Dad, have you lost your mind? With Harry backing you there's no chance you'll lose! He's the bloody Boy-Who-Lived, not many people will challenge him when it comes to defending the magical community!" Fred exclaimed. 

"It is a gracious offer, but I have my family to think about, too." 

"And what are we, the neighbors?" George asked sarcastically as Ron and Hermione ran into the hallway. 

"We heard yelling, is everything ok?" Ron asked, looking panicked. 

"Everything's fine here, oh brother of ours - except for the fact that our father's being a prat. Harry wants him to run for Minister for Magic, and he's disagreeing with him!" 

"Don't you speak about you father that way!" It was the first time in the whole conversation that Mrs. Weasley had spoken. "He's right - there are other things to consider. Having said that, Arthur," she addressed her husband, "I think Harry has a point. We need someone smart enough to know what is going on, and brave enough to do something about it. I thought that Scrimgeour would be that person, but clearly he wasn't." 

"Yeah Dad, it's a bloody brilliant idea," Ron chimed in. 

"Harry, don't you have some things to take care of before Hagrid and Lupin return?" Hermione intervened, trying to prevent outright warfare between the Weasleys. 

"Yes… did you get the information I needed about Azkaban?" he asked. 

"There aren't many details. The Ministry hasn't even disclosed the names of the people who managed to escape yet," she replied. 

"Okay then, get me in touch with someone at the Daily Prophet. I'm sure you still can get hold of Rita Skeeter if you have to, right?" 

"Yes, plus we may have some new contacts there. Katie Bell was supposed to start in the editing department this summer." 

Harry looked over at Fred and George. "Looks like you two have a recruitment assignment for this evening. Tell her what's going on and that I would like to speak to her as soon as possible." 

"Aye, Aye Captain." George said. 

"I'm sure she'll be up for helping; she still wants revenge for having to spend most of the last Quidditch season in the hospital thanks to that cursed necklace," Fred said with a smirk. 

"Hermione, I need you to send off a letter to Rita. Tell her I have a story for her, one that her bosses will not like very much. Last time we took a story like that to her, it paid off. Mrs. (Uh, I assume by now you realize that Mr. and Mrs. Need periods, so I won't mark those anymore, I'll just change them.) Weasley, can I ask that you go make sure that everyone is all settled in? Hermione sent our trunks here earlier, and I know that Aunt Petunia will be making a fuss about things. Kreacher, Dobby, can I see you for a moment?" 

Two loud pops followed Harry's words as the two house-elves appeared, looking at one another as though they were about to start fighting right there in the hallway. "I need you two to help Mrs. Weasley make everyone is comfortable in their new rooms. I'm not sure where the Headmistress intended us all to stay, but no doubt you have an idea." 

"Dobby would love to help, Harry Potter, sir," Dobby squeaked with joy. 

"Kreacher will help the filthy blood-traitors since the nasty master tells him to," Kreacher said in a disgusted tone. 

"Cheers everyone." Harry smiled. "Hermione, you can write your letter from the Headmistress's office - Ron, Mr. Weasley, will you come with us too?" 

Harry headed towards the Headmistress's office and Ron and Hermione followed, leaving Mr. Weasley to catch up with them. 

"Harry, I must admit I am very surprised about how well you have taken charge here," Mr. Weasley said once he was level with them. 

"Well, I kinda knew I would have to take the lead in one way or the other; I was given a task by Dumbledore and I intend to finish it. Having the Order to support me will make this task easier, but I suppose I would have managed without. What I find odd is that a month ago, you all thought me too young too think for myself and now you want me to think for the entire Order - I suppose having Dumbledore's approval has shown you all that I can be trusted." Harry managed to sound only slightly bitter. 

Mr. Weasley sighed. "Well, once the will was found, it was clear that Dumbledore thought you were the best man to replace him. You may not know this, but he made the finishing touches to the will on the day that he died; he seemed to know that something was going to happen. Minerva told you that you were the one he had left in charge only moments after you arrived tonight; and still, your main concern is to help everyone, not to get revenge on those of us who tried to control you earlier. That shows that you're pretty mature. Although I have to say, I still don't quite understand why you're offering to support me in becoming Minister for Magic!" 

"Neither do I, really," Harry admitted. 

Hermione had been listening to this exchange with interest. "I think I may have an idea, Harry. I looked through some of the things that your aunt gave you earlier, and by the looks of things, your father was a member of the Wizengamot. Not all of the seats are passed down through families now, but the Potter one is - and so is the Black one! You've basically got two seats on the Wizengamot, Harry. Now, we would have to look into…" Harry cut her off. 

"Why wasn't Narcissa Malfoy at my meeting with the Wizengamot, then?" he asked. 

"Just being in prison didn't strip Sirius of his seat; it remained his until he died. As soon as you're of age, you can claim both the seats. That will give you the platform to demand that the Minister stand down - provided you get enough support, and really, with the way his popularity's been sliding lately, that shouldn't be a challenge." 

"Who would I need to see to get my seats then?" Harry asked, still baffled. 

"That would be the new Chief Witch of the Wizengamot, Mrs. Augusta Longbottom," Mr. Weasley said with a smile. 

Harry laughed. "It can't be that easy! When did she get that title? The Daily Prophet never reported it!" 

"I think you will find that things will be easier for you than you realize, Harry. Augusta was just elected tonight - I had just left the Ministry when I got the message to come to Privet Drive. I grabbed everyone available - Molly, Bill and Charlie - and we sent Ginny here with Fleur to make sure that she was protected. Obviously, I didn't get the chance to tell you before." 

"Well in that case, I suppose there's a letter I should be writing." 

"Actually, Harry, I think a Floo call would be more appropriate," Hermione said, still smiling. Harry was about to question her when he realized what she meant - if he Floo called Mrs. Longbottom, he could invite Neville to stay at the castle with them at the same time. 

They had reached the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance to the Headmistress's office before Harry realized that, in all the excitement, he had forgotten to ask for the password. Just as he was turning around to explain this to Ron and Hermione, the gargoyle moved to reveal Professor McGonagall. 

"I was beginning to worry about what might have happened to you," she said, looking very concerned. 

"I was busy making some plans. Have Hagrid and Professor Lupin returned yet?" 

"Not yet, but you have other visitors," she said sharply; Harry could tell that she was not fond of whoever was waiting for him in her office. He slowly followed her up the stairwell, Ron, Hermione, and Mr. Weasley behind him. 

"Ah, Harry my boy. How good to see you again." Harry recognized the voice of Rufus Scrimgeour before he even saw him. Standing behind the Minister were Dolores Umbridge, Percy Weasley, and Augusta Longbottom. Harry thought fast. 

"Ah, Mrs. Longbottom, I was just about to send you a letter. I wanted to congratulate you on your election. Mr. Weasley just told me about it," Harry said, purposely ignoring the three members of the Ministry. 

"Why thank you, Mr. Potter. Neville has told me so much about what has been going on in this school; I think it imperative that someone stand up for what needs to be done, and hopefully my new position will allow me to do just that." 

"You know, Mrs. Longbottom, I quite agree. Now, it has been brought to my attention that I have inherited a seat on the Wizengamot - is that true?" 

"I do believe it is, Harry," she said with a smile. She seemed to realize where Harry was going with this. "In fact, I do believe that you inherited the Potter seat, the Black seat, and Dumbledore's seat. I would think you would like to place proxies in each seat until you are of age?" 

"Well, I turn of age in less than a month and I will take the Potter seat. I would like Hermione to take the Black seat if possible, and Professor McGonagall can take Professor Dumbledore's. If everyone agrees to that." 

"I find that quite acceptable. Do both of you ladies wish to take the seats?" 

Hermione answered first. "If that's what Harry wants - well, I'm not going to refuse a seat on the Wizengamot." 

McGonagall only looked at him. "Harry, are you sure that this is how you want it?" she asked. 

"You're the two most reasonable people I know; you're not going to get blinded by politics, and you'll judge each case on its own points. I think that you will do a good job on the Wizengamot." 

"Well said, Mr. Potter," Mrs. Longbottom said, obviously pleased with his choices. 

"Well then, yes, I accept the position," Professor McGonagall said. 

"Wonderful - that means we finally have a full membership!" 

"Now if I may, I wanted to see how you were doing, Harry my boy," Scrimgeour said. He didn't seem particularly pleased at being ignored in this manner. 

"Yes, that reminds me, Mrs. Longbottom - another reason I was going to write to you. Would it be possible to call for an election of a capable Minister for Magic by August 29th? I would like to be there to cast my vote." 

Percy, Umbridge and the Minister all broke into shouts, until Mrs. Longbottom joined in - by far the loudest of them all - telling the Minister and his company to calm them down. Ron was stood at the back of the room, smirking at the events that were taking place. After a few seconds of chaos, the room finally settled back down. Harry walked over to the Minister. 

"You come into Hogwarts with Dolores Umbridge, a woman who insisted that Voldemort was not back. A woman who tormented me for a year." Harry showed the scars on his hand to the Minister. "A woman who sent Dementors to my house to make everyone think I was crazy, and you want to know how I am doing? I'll be much better when I've removed you from office - say, the end of the summer? It's not just me; the Daily Prophet are calling for your resignation, too, and as soon as the full details are released regarding the latest breakout, I would guess that there would be even more people. Not to mention that Mrs. Longbottom seems to be every bit as much against your policies as I am myself. Now, if you don't minds, I'm sure the Headmistress would like her office back." 

Scrimgeour turned, speechless, stepped into the fireplace and promptly left; Umbridge and Percy all but ran after him. As soon as they were gone, McGonagall walked up to Harry and put a hand on his shoulder. 

"Are you sure all of that was necessary?" she asked


	4. Role of the Leader

"Well, it may not have been necessary, but I had to let some steam off. Now, I have a plan - I'm glad you're here, Mrs. Longbottom, as it will save me having to explain it to you again later on..." he paused before continuing, "... I've asked Mr. Weasley to run for Minister of Magic." 

"And I've agreed," interjected Mr. Weasley, earning a surprised but warm smile from Harry before he carried on. 

"And I know that it will take hard work to ensure that he wins the election - this is one of the reasons that I was eager to fill all three seats that are available to me; I know that I surprised you both, Hermione, Professor. 

"However, I wanted the Minister to know that I plan to oppose him – the price I'm going to pay for that is that he is likely to launch some sort of smear campaign against me, and ignore all other opposition. My guess is that he came here tonight to try and convince me to help him save his job, and instead he's found exactly the opposite. Mrs. Longbottom, why did he bring you with him?" 

"He certainly didn't invite me, Harry; he just happened to mention that he had just heard that you had been transferred to Hogwarts, and would be calling in to see you, and I drew the same conclusions as you – why else would he be coming here at this time of night? So, I thought that I had better come along to keep an eye on things. I have to say, though, I expected to have to fight to make you see the error of his ways – I was pleasantly surprised. Not to mention, you have picked two very suitable candidates to join the Wizengamot. Miss Granger, I will send you information on the next meeting. Minerva, your position in Dumbledore's seat will have to be approved by the Wizengamot, but that should not be a problem – you are well respected. I will nominate you tomorrow." Hermione and Professor McGonagall both nodded their agreement. "Now, it's getting late; I should leave – Algie has probably burned the house down by now!" 

"Mrs. Longbottom; one more thing before you go. Would it be okay if Neville comes here to visit us occasionally? I want to rebuild the DA, and he was always an important member. It would give him something to do over the summer, too." 

"I think he would like that. I'll ask him for you." 

"Thank you, and have a good night. I look forward to seeing you soon," Harry said, waving goodbye to her as she walked towards the fireplace. As soon as she disappeared, he turned and motioned for everyone to take a seat. 

He waited until everyone else was seated before sinking into a chair by the fireplace. McGonagall sat at her desk, with Ron and Mr. Weasley in front of her, and Hermione went to a small table near the window, where she promptly began writing her letter to Rita Skeeter. 

"Well, I have to say, Potter – I didn't expect that," McGonagall said after a few seconds, breaking the silence. 

"I'm just tired of the Ministry acting like a bunch of idiots about everything. I mean, he had the nerve to bring Umbridge here after what she and her bloody ‘Inquisitorial Squad' did to you! Sorry, Professor, they just make me so angry!" He paused, taking a deep breath to calm himself, and McGonagall waved him on. When he continued, it was in a calmer tone. "Anyway, you wanted to discuss my inheritance from Dumbledore?" 

"I did. You already know that he left you his seat on the Wizengamot, either to fill yourself, or to find another suitable replacement for; but he also made another suggestion – Madam Marshbanks is going to be retiring from her seat soon, and he thought that it would be advisable for you to nominate Remus Lupin for the placement." 

"I'll ask Professor Lupin about it as soon as he gets back. I don't suppose you would be able to write to Madam Marshbanks and double check that she is retiring?" Professor McGonagall nodded her acquiescence. "Anything else, Professor?" 

"He left his Gringotts vault to you, as well as more-or-less the entire contents of this room. Most of his personal items were given to his brother, Aberforth." Harry glanced around the room. It was still decorated the way it had been on the night of Dumbledore's death; books lining the walls, bizarre magical devices all over the room, the Pensieve still in its cabinet. All of this was his. 

"What about everything else?" 

"What do you mean, ‘everything else'?" 

"Well, when's the next Order meeting; what do we know about the breakout from Azkaban? That ‘everything else'." 

McGonagall sighed. "I'm afraid we do not know much about the breakout at all, though Nymphadora, Kingsley and Moody have been trying to gather information. There's something of a shortage of witnesses, but we have found out that at least a couple of Aurors were killed, and we can probably assume that the situation is fairly dire if Scrimgeour risked coming here in the hope of gaining support." 

The door to the office opened slowly, admitting Lupin and Hagrid. 

"Good to see you, Harry," Lupin said faintly – he seemed to be in shock. 

"What did you manage to find out, Remus?" McGonagall asked. 

"Not much, we didn't get any of the big names; the only two bodies belonged to Casper Burke and an unidentified woman, who Moody reckons looks like a member of one of the Carrows clans." He glanced around the room. "Have we missed anything here?" 

"Harry has just been showing his claws," McGonagall said, looking amused. "He seems to be jumping headfirst into his newfound leadership; so far, he has forged a relationship with the new head of the Wizengamot, appointed three new members to the court, and informed Scrimgeour that he will see him out of office before the end of summer..." 

"He did what? Minerva, I meant to speak to you earlier – are you entirely sure he's ready for this responsibility? Isn't he... well, a little young to be running the Order?" 

"You heard just fine, Professor," Harry snapped, annoyed, "and Professor McGonagall seems to think that ‘he' has done a perfectly reasonable job so far." 

"I seem to have missed a lot," Remus said carefully, trying not to upset Harry any further, but before he could continue, Harry had started talking again. 

"Okay, I need to arrange a meeting of the Order as soon as possible. Professor McGonagall, can you handle that for me?" 

"I can," she answered. 

"Good, thank you. Was there anything else that needed to be discussed tonight?" 

"Actually, there was one other thing, Harry - I have arranged for you to take over the personal rooms of Professor Dumbledore. I am going to have all of the things you have inherited sent there tonight." 

"Where is everyone else staying?" 

"We've managed to give everyone their own rooms, rather than having to put them in the dormitories - and Ron, Hermione, Fred and George are all near you. 

"Thank you, Professor." Harry stood up and walked out of the office and down the stone staircase, followed by Ron and Hermione. "Ron, could you please go get the twins and Ginny?" 

"Yeah mate, I can do that." 

"Great, thanks," Harry said, watching Ron leave and then heading in the opposite direction. He waited until the boy was out of earshot before the determined expression he had been wearing all night left his face and he turned to his other friend, looking troubled. "Hermione, I think I'm out of my depth." 

"What do you mean, Harry? You were great tonight! You managed to show everyone that you were in control of everything. People listened to you; you finally proved to everyone that you're not just their puppet. Gods, even Ron was speechless! I know this is going to be tough, but you've already done us proud – as long as you don't order us around too much!" She started to laugh. "I still can't get over you just ignoring the Minister like that – the look on his face, Harry!" 

Harry cracked a grin, though he still didn't look completely convinced. "Cheers, ‘Mione. Anyway–" he had come to a stop outside the Room of Requirement. "Here we are!" He walked past the blank wall three times, I need a headquarters for the DA, and a door appeared. The first thing that Harry spotted was his copy of Advanced Potion-Making from the year before, sat on a table right in the middle of the room. "Do you think there might be something important in here?" he asked, picking it up. 

"Well, I suppose it does give us an insight into Snape. Here, let me read it; I'm sure that if the room thinks it's important, there must be something in here." Harry handed her the book and she went to sit in the corner and began flicking through it. Harry walked over to the bookshelf on the other side of the room, scanning the titles and pulling out a book on the First War, which he took back to the centermost table and began to read. It was a few more minutes before Ron and the others joined them, and when everyone else was gathered around the table, Hermione put down the Potions book and joined them. 

"Now that we're all together: Fred, George, what did you find out about Katie?" Harry asked. 

"She said all you had to do was ask. She seemed happy to be able to do something to help with the war, and she wants to meet up with you the next time you go to London." 

"Brilliant! You all know that I've decided to challenge Scrimgeour, and have suggested to your dad that he runs for Minister. I've also placed Hermione, McGonagall and myself on the Wizengamot." 

"Yeah, you missed Harry going off on one at the Minister," Ron cut in, looking positively gleeful. "It was priceless! Our dear older brother turned fourteen shades of green, but didn't have the guts to say anything. He – he... Harry didn't," he snorted, "didn't even acknowledge them!" He had to stop talking at this point, as he was laughing too hard to continue. 

Harry gave a crooked smile. "Er – yeah, thanks, Ron! Right! To win this election, Mr. Weasley is going to need support from all different areas of the public, which is where you guys come in; we need to get the word out to as many people as possible, drum up some enthusiasm! We need some information on impeachment procedures..." He looked at Hermione. "And you three," he said, pointing at Fred, George and Ginny, "could you get to work on designing some posters?" 

"Did you find out anything about the Death Eaters?" Ginny asked.   
"Just that only two of them went down at Privet Drive, and McGonagall reckons the breakout must have been pretty bad for Scrimgeour to come here looking for support," Harry replied. 

There was a pause while they all considered their situation. 

"What we need..." Hermione was deep in thought. "What we need, is a spy within the Death Eaters!" 

"Yeah, ‘Mione, I'm sure there's loads of people who'd volunteer for a job like that!" Ron said sarcastically, causing the witch to flush. 

 

"Well, where's your brilliant idea then?!" 

 

"Calm down, I was only saying!" Ron raised his hands in surrender. 

 

Hermione tutted. "Harry, what about the you-know-whats?" she asked, earning her confused glances from the twins and Ginny. 

"I know that we haven't made much progress over the summer, but I just know that we're on the right track – there's bound to be more books here at Hogwarts, so maybe the research will be more successful here, plus I want to go and have a look around at Godric's Hollow." He paused, sighing. "Before any of that, though, I need to help Aunt Petunia plan Uncle Vernon's funeral. 

"Anyway, other than that, we just all need to keep our eyes and ears open – we need as much information as we can get! Fred, George, are you planning on keeping the shop open? If you are, it could be invaluable; you'll have easy access to the customers, not to mention you're right next to Knockturn A– " a large yawn broke him off, and he grinned, "–Alley. Guess I'm tired! If no one else has anything to add, I think it's time to go to bed; it's been a long night." He waited a few moments but no one spoke. "Right, I'll see you all in the morning then." He stood up. 

Fred and George also got to their feet. "This way Harry," they said in unison. 

"We'll show you the way; we've got some things we want to discuss with you anyway," said George. 

"Yeah, we wanted you to know that we've been working on a new range of products, more stuff on the defensive side of things. We're still testing them at the moment, but as soon as we're happy with them, we'll give you some to try out." 

"Awesome, guys. So how is business anyway?" 

"Fantastic – we've just bought Zonkos. This way, we have an excuse to come to Hogsmeade whenever we need to." 

"Listen, I wanted to thank you for coming when you did. I'm not sure what would have happened if you hadn't been there." 

"It was nothing mate. You are our fearless leader, after all! You've never called us before, so we knew you must really need us; it's good to know that you realize you can rely on us," Fred said. 

"You know it was nothing personal, me never taking you with me before, right? If you'd been there, you would have been with the rest of us – you're as close to me as any of the others. I'll tell you what; I give you my word that from now on, I will not go into battle without you. Can't have you missing out on all the excitement!" Harry finished talking, realizing that they had stopped in front of a large oak door. 

"Dumbledore's bedchambers," George said. "McGonagall said that no one has been in there since he died. We can come with you if you want." 

"I'll go in with him." They turned to see who had spoken, and saw Lupin standing behind them. "I'll go in with you," he repeated. "There are some things we need to talk about anyway." 

"Go ahead, we'll catch up with you tomorrow," George said, walking away from Harry. 

Lupin ushered Harry inside the room, which was already filled with all of the books and magical instruments from Dumbledore's office, plus about three times as many again. Harry noticed a flash of silver out of the corner of his eye; the Pensieve had been moved here, too. He had to admire the efficiency of the house-elves. 

As soon as he had shut the door, Lupin started talking: "Harry, I'm sorry about earlier - everything was just a bit of a shock. I'm having a hard time relating my best friend's son and my former student to this new friend and leader. I think, for a start, you need to begin calling me Remus." He smiled at the younger man, who inclined his head slightly. It was likely to be the best reaction he could hope for at the minute. "Thank you, Harry," he said softly. "Now, Minerva tells me you put on quite a show tonight! And yes, she and Arthur are as convinced as I am that it was an act. You don't need to try and fool us; we know how hard it must be to have all this responsibility piled on you all of a sudden. I think you had the Minister convinced, though!" 

Harry chose not to comment on this; let them think what they wanted, he couldn't afford to show any weakness. He couldn't be bothered explaining about the empty place on the Wizengamot to Lupin just yet either – he made a mental note to leave that conversation till tomorrow. Instead, he turned his attention to the room. "I never would have pictured it like this," he murmured. 

Lupin smiled gently, not wanting to press the issue. Let Harry open up in his own time. "Minerva thought it best to let you stay here. I think she secretly hopes that there is something in there that will help you to solve whatever it is you are working on. I hope you know you can count on me – if you want my help with anything, that is." Harry remained silent. He looked around the room. 

"Here, Harry – look at this." He was stood by a desk that held a delicate-looking instrument; Harry recognized it as the one that Dumbledore had used on the night of Mr Weasley's attack in his fifth year. "It lets you see the very essence of an incident – it can be incredibly useful! For example, you can usually use it to deduce whether someone was acting under the Imperius Curse or not. Unfortunately, it wasn't invented until after the First War. But this time, we can use it to see who is guilty and who is innocent!" He looked at Harry expectantly, but no response was forthcoming. 

"Yes, well... it's very late. I should let you get to bed. Before I go, I thought you would like to know – Tonks returned while you were with your friends. All of the Death Eaters escaped from Azkaban, and all of the guards were killed." He hung his head. "We lost Mundungus Fletcher, too – it was over his body that the Dark Mark was suspended." 

"Thank you, Pr- Remus." They had walked over to the door whilst the man had been talking, and now Harry opened it for him. "Goodnight. I'll see you in the morning." 

Alone at last, Harry walked through to the bedroom, and found that all of his personal belongings had been moved in for him. Probably Dobby, he thought wryly, flopping down onto the bed. He felt a little intrusive, staying in Dumbledore's quarters. But, he reminded himself as he drifted off to sleep, without so much as removing his glasses, it's for the best; Dumbledore's gone now, and I'm in charge... of everything.


End file.
